After reading my recent blog posts, my mother emailed to ask if frozen spinach is safe. And last night, while I was shopping at Trader Joe’s, a woman was returning a bag of frozen spinach “just to play it safe.”

If you’ve missed eating spinach over the last week, here’s how you can get your organic food fix. The FDA has officially stated: “At this time, FDA has no evidence that frozen spinach, canned spinach and spinach included in pre-made meals manufactured by food companies are affected.” (These products are cooked before they’re packaged.)

The Latest Statistics

The most recent FDA update:

We’re now at 146 cases of illness due to E. coli infection, including 23 cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome, 76 hospitalizations and one death. Illnesses continue to be reported to the CDC.

Arizona and Colorado have been added to the list of states with confirmed cases. There are now 23 affected states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

The New Mexico Department of Health announced it has linked a sample from a package of spinach with a patient’s illness. The package that tested positive was Dole Baby Spinach, Best if Used by Aug. 30.

The FDA advises consumers to avoid eating fresh spinach or products that contain fresh spinach until further notice. Fresh spinach includes bagged spinach, spinach in a clamshell and loose spinach purchased from retail establishments (supermarkets, restaurants and farmer’s markets).

Another Recall

On Tuesday, RLB Food Distributors of West Caldwell, New Jersey, initiated a voluntary recall of certain salad products that may contain spinach with an “Enjoy Thru” date of 9/20/06.